Chapter 7: Rise of Night Walkers I

Malakai

"I was like you once. A neglective father that blamed me for all his life problems." he looked off to the distance, reminiscing, "Do you know what it's like to never feel your mother's love."

"Try not having any recollection of ever having a mother. I guarantee it's a far worse feeling." Livia thought.

Malakai continued with his painful memory. "My mother died during childbirth. My father took it upon himself to instill that I murdered my mother. He constantly reminded me of how I took the love of his life away from him. In his words, if my wife didn't have such a big heart and terminated the pregnancy after knowing the risk like I told her, she would be here with me, and I wouldn't be stuck with a curse."

A curse? Did his own father call him a curse? Livia balled her fist in anger. "How can he blame you for that? You didn't choose to be born." she burst. "And if your father loved your mother the way he claimed, he would have loved you with a mother's heart, not a stranger."

"I couldn't have said it better myself. One night I overheard a conversation my father was having with some guy. He wanted that man to get rid of me without raising suspicion. That was enough for me. I knew it would've been my end if I didn't leave. So I packed what I could in my backpack and ran away. I took shelter in a back alley far away from that hell. I was saved by an angel in the middle of winter, nearly freezing to death. One of the Originals found me. He took me in, gave me food, and a place to stay."

"What about the rest of you? What's your story."

"Well, my girl Jonah and I were the following members to join the gang. I was only nine when I witnessed my family being brutally murdered."

"I was ten." Jonah suddenly said. "Alaric's family took me in when my family couldn't afford to keep me. I was grateful to Alaric and my parents for not abandoning me. But to see people who cared for me like I were one of their own be beaten, maimed, and violated before your eyes can leave an eternal scar on a kid's mind. Knowing I couldn't overpower those monsters haunts me to this day."

 Alaric patted Jonah's shoulder. "We were abducted and forced to do things we never wanted to. I was ten when I killed for the first time; a four-year-old boy name Timothy. He was sickly and of no use, according to them. I didn't want to do it and knew he didn't stand a chance. But it was either kill or be killed." he looked down at his hands and balled them. "These hands were once created by monsters, and now they are used to taking them out."

"We were trapped for three more years after that. Our window for escape finally came when we were assigned to a suicide mission. When the fight started, we ran. Our plan was successful, but the money we saved barely lasted a month. So we did what they knew best, survive. An Original caught us stealing food and offered a better life. Given their situation, it didn't take much convincing, but we were still cautious."

Malakai tucked his hands in his pocket. "The two had a tough time trusting people, but I took them under my wings and earned their trust. That was only the beginning. Months later, we were sent on our first mission as a unit. The mission was to persuade a young trickster to join us. Bet you can't guess which one of us it was."

"Uhm, Blake?"

Malakai shook his head. "Nope, Luca."

"Really?" Livia scanned Luca from head to toe. "He seems like a klutz."

Luca's mouth fell open. "Seriously, why does everyone always say that."

Livia shrugged her shoulders. "Sorry, you just have a really dumb face."

"Okay, that's just rude."

"Despite his dumb face, word on the street, Luca had an eye for precious things."

"Ironic because there's nothing precious about his face." Livia teased.

Luca gasped. "What have I done to you?"

"Exist."

"You're like a little spawn of Satan. So heartless."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Of course, you would."

"Anyway. That night, he stole millions of dollars worth of precious jewels and relics from an illegal auctioning event. Jonah, Alaric, and I perched on nearby buildings to watch his escapades from a distance. We were impressed that he could get through a heavily guarded, high-tech security system. But what sold us was when he purposely got captured and allowed the guards to do a full-body search and found nothing."

"Nothing?" Livia tilted her head attentively. "What do you mean by nothing?"

"He no longer had the jewels. We were astonished because we never took our eyes off him."

"I don't think he is working alone," Alaric said, observing Luca's every move.

Smiling down at my phone, "I know. We better keep moving, guys."

Jonah furrowed his brows. "Wait, what are you not telling us?" he questioned skeptically.

Pointing toward our target, "Shh, observe and learn,"

"Another boy came out of the shadows helping Luca take down the guards twice his size. The strength of the younger boy was unbelievable. We followed the two on their quest until they eventually walked into some abandoned apartment complex. Peeking into the crate, Luca and two others were leaning against old rundown office desks that had been pushed together. On one side were monitors. On the other, all types of tools and gadgets and the jewels that were just stolen."

"Here are the documents you asked for, Asa. How did you know where they would be?"

"Oh, my little Heath, there is a lot you still have to learn. It's a reason why I am known as Night Owl. I see more than most."

"But what do we do about the jewels?" Heath asked while casually tossing a twenty-four-carat diamond gold ring in the air.

Asa took the ring from his hand and carefully placed it on the desk. "Return them." He simply replied.

"Return them! You think I did all that to return them to those disgusting, greedy, selfish assholes?" Luca yelled.

Asa sighed. "You knew from the beginning what the intention of this mission was. You stealing the jewels was just a decoy for Heath. At the same time, he gathered evidence against our so-called spotless government officials participating in illegal auctioning. People of this city need to know what these people do with their tax money. Those scroungers need to be thrown under the jail."

"That's exactly my point. If those vultures will be thrown in jail anyway, why should the jewels be returned?" Luca argued.

Asa rubbed his hands down his face in frustration. "Because they're marked. Come here, you see this?" He put one of the jewels under the magnifier. "That is an encrypted code, the moment we try to sell these, the authorities will be informed, and we will be thrown into jail. Even if we were to release this crucial piece of evidence to the public, it would be debunked before hitting the morning news. Those scroungers could easily say we stole those jewels and trying to deflect our delinquency by defaming them."

Stepping out of hiding with Jonah and Alaric on my tail, "Maybe we can help,"

"Took you long enough to finally make yourselves known." Asa sneered, "Listen, we are good on our own. We don't need help or anything you have to offer."

"You know them?" Luca asked while standing on guard beside Heath.

"Something like that." He turned one of his monitors towards us. On the screen were multiple snapshots of us perched on different buildings. "They have been watching us, well, you, from the moment you snuck into the auctioning."

Jonah looked at him, impressed. "If you knew we were watching this whole time, why didn't you do anything?"

Asa smirked. "Because if anything was to go wrong, I would use these pictures to frame you."

Alaric clapped his hands while letting out a hysterical laugh. "Ah, you are my type of guy, bold and direct."

Asa crossed his arms. "I see no reason to lie. There are consequences for ambitious guys like yourselves, who stick their noses where they don't belong. But, lucky for you, nothing went wrong."

Alaric took a snicker bar from his jacket pocket. "Impressive. You three should join forces with us."

Asa rolled his eyes. "Not interested. Like I said before, we don't need anything you have to offer."

"Are you sure about that? We have something that even your eyes can't see. How else do you think we were able to track Luca down in the first place?"

"If you are so good, why do you need us?" Luca taunted.

Malakai eyed Jonah and Alaric before stepping forward. "We need to form a team of vigilantes to save those who can't save themselves."

Asa shook his head. "No, we are not looking to play the hero."

"Oh, really. So what are you doing all this for." Asa fell silent "Exactly, we need you just as much as you need us. There is a place far beyond your imagination, right below your nose."

"Hidden City. A haven for the lost, broken, and forgotten. It's where the abused become strong, the outcasted are wanted, and hope for mankind is revived. Blah, blah, blah. I've been there a few times."

"Wait, are you a citizen?" Jonah asked

"No. Though I was offered."

"Protector?"

"I'm not looking to play hero, remember."

"Then how?"

"I found it bypassed the security, which needs some serious work. I was caught, questioned, and released after declining to be a citizen. But I was still granted a pass to enter the city by a very enthusiastic fellow named Milo. He claimed to be one of the founders of the city. Ironically, isn't the Hidden City meant to be found?"

"In a sense. Listen, we need you guys. Please join us." I pleaded.

"Asa's well-developed system has just finished pulling our information. Analyze it and make your decision. We have nothing to hide." Jonah smiled, knowing they had just gained three new members.

"Our two groups joined forces from that day onward, but something was still missing. With added resources and skills, we caught wind of an orphanage forcing children into some dirty business. There have been multiple complaints against this orphanage about possible mistreatment and the well-being of the children. Still, somehow the orphanage managed to stay open. Sadly, this is where the final two members of the group, Percy, and Blake, were saved.